UTILITIES: The story behind NRG Energy’s shake-up involves hesitant investors and friction over the company’s direction. (EnergyWire)

CLEAN ENERGY:
• A group of Las Vegas casinos “are looking at leaving the power system” and producing or procuring clean energy on their own. (The Guardian)
• A new report ranks the top corporate investments in clean energy. (National Geographic)

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OVERSIGHT: Arizona lawmakers advance a bill that would allow the newest member of the state’s Corporation Commission to vote on utility cases despite a conflict of interest. (Prescott Daily Courier)

SUPREME COURT: Two potential Obama appointees have experience in deciding environmental regulatory cases. (Greenwire)

CLIMATE:
• Three members of Congress seek an investigation of whether Shell Oil violated securities laws by failing to disclose climate risks to investors. (InsideClimate News)
• Low oil prices are jeopardizing the economics of oilfield carbon sequestration projects. (Scientific American)

SOLAR:
• Pennsylvania has reached the solar target in its renewable energy standard five years early. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Three of Florida’s seven Supreme Court justices question the clarity and purpose of the proposed constitutional amendment backed by utilities. (Miami Herald)
• Utah lawmakers approve a bill that critics say will harm the rooftop solar market. (Associated Press)
• Developers kill a New Jersey solar project amid opposition from neighbors over aesthetics. (NJ.com)
• The Bureau of Land Management introduces new guidelines to speed solar development on public lands. (PV Magazine)
• Vivint Solar terminates its proposed $2.2 billion merger with SunEdison. (Reuters)

COAL:
• Wyoming has largely avoided major coal mining layoffs, but that may be about to change. (Casper Star-Tribune)
• JPMorgan will no longer finance new coal mines, or coal plants in “high income” countries. (Bloomberg)
• The convicted ex-CEO of Massey Energy tied to a deadly 2010 West Virginia mine explosion is fighting $28 million in restitution sought by prosecutors. (Associated Press)
The Obama administration rejects a request from William Koch for $14 million in royalty refunds from a defunct Colorado coal mine. (Reuters)

OIL AND GAS:
• In legal briefs, states and industry groups say the federal government doesn’t have the authority to regulate fracking. (The Hill)
More than 50 protesters are arrested for blocking the entrance to a proposed natural gas storage facility in New York. (Public News Service)
• Oklahoma expands the area covered in an effort to reduce earthquakes caused by wastewater disposal wells. (Oklahoman)
• An effort by neighbors to get idled gas wells plugged near a Los Angeles school backfires. (Los Angeles Times)

NUCLEAR:
• Duke Energy says it may not know for weeks what caused a fire at a South Carolina nuclear plant, part of which remains shut down. (Independent Mail)
• A new study confirms a Florida nuclear plant is leaking radioactive elements into Biscayne Bay. (Miami Herald)

GRID: Grid operator MISO could have a limited set of market rules for energy storage as early as 2017. (RTO Insider)

EFFICIENCY:
• How a rural New Hampshire cooperative is emerging as a leader on demand response. (Concord Monitor)
• The Minnesota Department of Transportation is converting streetlights across the state to LEDs to save money and reduce energy use. (CBS Minnesota)

TECHNOLOGY: MIT researchers develop a technique to convert smokestack emissions into fuel. (The Guardian)

COMMENTARY: “The potential for offshore wind is virtually limitless.” (Huffington Post)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.

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